The family of gold medal winning sailor Tom Burton, parents Lynne and Peter, sister Alison and his girlfriend Emma Knighton were exciting to greet him at the homecoming.

The group were in Rio to watch him win gold.

"We're super excited to see him and proud of his achievements overseas," Lynne Burton said.

Detained athletes return home

Among the passengers were nine athletes whose passports were returned on Sunday (Rio time) after a last-minute renegotiation regarding payment of fines for falsifying documents.

The athletes were detained by police for close to 10 hours when they tried to attend a basketball game and were charged with altering their Olympic accreditations — a practice Chef de Mission Kitty Chiller said was widespread, and that she had failed to end.

Swimmer Josh Palmer was also on the passenger manifest, having been interviewed by Rio police for nearly six hours on Saturday over his claims he was robbed at gunpoint in Copacabana.

An Australian Olympic official said police accepted his version of events and no further action would be taken.

The Australian team spent their final night together in Rio at the athletes' village, with Chiller lifting the alcohol ban.